This 'Hoods got split into 2 pieces. On our first visit there was, you guys, a tornado. No shit. The sirens went off while we were in the car. So we raced it back to the north side, mid-'Hoods. That was in November of 2013. So Bill and I went back in December of 2013 to finish her off. And, honestly, we went back again in 2015 during Open House Chicago to get INTO a few buildings that had been closed. The moral is that Bill and I can't get enough of South Shore. We've done the crap outta South Shore. We're pretty intimate with South Shore. At least the version that was available in 2013. Not sure what's changed in the interim.
Bill prepped this 'Hoods
Participants: Round 1 was Bill, Kelly and Kate. Round 2 was just Kelly and Bill
Highlights:
-South Shore Cultural Center (where the
Obamas got married. As did our friends John
and Christine!). Remember when we took
the elevator upstairs and just wandered around
the kitchen area? And that little art gallery dedicated
to Dr. Margaret Burroughs?
-the Francis Kenna apartments with those art deco
panels on em
-the Jackson Park Highlands Historic District.
cool houses. Remember that older couple that
was gardening and really got into what we were
doing? Bill gave em a packet.
-72nd street is where all the action is
-the Jeffrey-Cyril historic district had the big, old
high(er) rises.
-the St. Philip Neri Catholic Church. Closed cause
some bishop had died? Then closed again on our
2nd visit? The rare hard-to-get-into Catholic church.
That's usually reserved for the Lutherans.
-the Allen Miller house. designed by Bergen, a FLW
associate. Bill and I GOT to get some Prairie in.
-the Windsor Beach apartments....
-and then a tornado.
so...round 2 in December
-Mosque Maryam. Didn't get in, but walked around.
-south shore college prep high school
-a coupla more architecturally notable houses
-the New Regal theater, which we manage to get into
in 2015 during Open House Chicago. Gorgeous. Being renovated?
-South Shore historic Bungalow District. We love these.
-we then walked Rainbow Beach in the midst of snow
and ice. Had it all to ourselves, for sure. Very pretty in
a winter wonderland kind of way. Cold! Great views
of the skyline.
-we went in the South Shore public library, and the folks
there seemed super confused by our presence and lingering.
-St Luke Missionary Baptist, originally the 18th Church of
Christ. Couldn't get in here, either.
-Also couldn't access St. Margaret's Episcopal church.
I don't think St Luke's or St. Margaret's were on the original
itinerary. Now we were just riffing.
-found another random church! The Ministry Nehemiah
Urban Baptist Church. Formerly the South Side
Hebrew Congregation. We were hitting all the denominations!
-we tried DESPERATELY to find a place to eat that was
open, and landed at Yah's vegan. It was...fine. Pretty 'rustic.'
Closed down now.
my flickr album for both the Nov and Dec 2013 visits to South Shore
Bill's South Shore 'Hoods packet
Impressions: So much history and so many beautiful and architecturally significant buildings! Lovely beach! South Shore has seen better times. Economically depressed. Which makes options for dining and entertainment limited. A lot of trash and derelict buildings among the treasures. Loitering. But SOME of the neighborhood is well tended, and well loved. We went in the winter, which means that there wasn't a lot of action on the streets. But there were hints of vibrancy. It was certainly an interesting neighborhood with lots to see.
In Oct 2015 we visited more South Shore during Open House Chicago. With William we saw the inside of the New Regal Theater. Breathtaking. And we saw the recently renovated Stony Island Arts Bank. Here's an excerpt about it from the Open House Chicago web site (cause it's not in the packet):
"The temple-like former Stony Island Trust and Savings Bank is one of the last remnants of what was once a dense commercial strip along Stony Island Avenue. The gray terra cotta structure, originally the Stony Island Savings and Trust, was built in 1923 with a dramatic vaulted banking lobby. Its architect, William Gibbons Uffendell, also designed a number of other local bank buildings. It served a succession of financial institutions, but lost its tenants in the late seventies and remained vacant for many years. The building was saved from demolition at the last minute by artist Theaster Gates. Now, this landmark has been restored and reopened as the Stony Island Arts Bank, a hub for free arts and cultural programming for Gates' Rebuild Foundation. The building houses items from the library of Ebony and Jet magazine's founding publisher John H. Johnson; the record collection of seminal house DJ Frankie Knuckles; and several other notable artistic collections."
my Open House Chicago 2015 flickr album
here's my flickr photo set from John and Christine's wedding, held at the South Shore Cultural Center in 2014
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